


Drag Me to Hell...Well Actually Heaven

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-23
Updated: 2015-09-23
Packaged: 2018-04-23 02:43:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4860008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“As my disdain for a vast amount of the human race goes, you are very low on that list.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Drag Me to Hell...Well Actually Heaven

It was getting late and this was probably wrong. No, it was already late and there was nothing wrong about it. Well, it might be a little wrong but not criminally wrong or anything. No, it wasn’t wrong at all and she was done talking herself out of it. She pushed the 4 on her phone, held it to her ear, and listened to it ring.

“Good evening, Detective Benson.”

“Where are you right now?” she asked. The niceties were nice but she'd get right to the point.

“I'm actually leaving the office. I just did two plea agreements and a speedy trial motion that has to be in the judge’s hands by Thursday. I don’t need Arlene Heller using me as an example of incompetence to the law school groupies who follow her around. Are you alright?”

“I really want to get drunk tonight. I know, it’s probably not the best idea but…”

“What do you have?” he asked. Drinking it off, whatever it was, was rarely the best idea. But it was usually an idea worth considering.

“Nothing.”

“So this is a call for help and not for company.” He said.

“Friends don’t let friends who’ve had really bad days go to bed sober or alone.” Olivia said.

“We don’t. Do you want to get wine drunk or blind drunk? There are levels to this, Detective; you should know which one before you press the start button.”

Olivia wasn’t as young as she used to be and a wine hangover in the morning would be bad enough. The idea of putting a hurting on a good bottle of vodka or rum had passed her mind. It had been a while since she had more than a glass or two of the hard stuff. In her line of work, controlled drinking was much better. One never knew when the phone was going to ring and she'd be back on the streets of Manhattan for the job.

“Surprise me.” She said.

“I can do that. Are you at the station?”

“I'm at home. I left the station almost an hour ago and didn’t stop anywhere because I thought I still had at least two bottles of wine.”

“I’ll be there soon; it’s going to be OK. Are you hungry?”

“Yes.” Olivia groaned a reply. She was actually starving and it was a doubly bad idea to drink on an empty stomach. “You're my hero, Counselor.”

“I’ll try not to let that go to my head. I’ll see you soon.”

“OK.”

She hung up the phone and was able to breathe. Now she could get out of her work clothes and relax. This case, these victims that Olivia had been working with for the past week and a half, were getting to her. The job was never easy and wasn’t for the faint of heart. Having been in it as long as she had Olivia Benson had seen a lot. 

But every victim was different. Knowing that was essential to keeping yourself from becoming too hardened to do the job right. No one ever needed to tell her how to be a cop. Being a victim’s advocate was different for nearly everyone she encountered. Keeping up wasn’t always easy. Tonight Olivia just needed to let her hair down.

000

“I may have overdone it,” Rafael said as he walked into her apartment. “I'm willing to concede that point if it comes up.”

“What did you do?” Olivia took one of the bags from him, closing the door. It was the food and smelled delicious. He had two bags from the liquor store. She could hear bottles clinking inside.

“Well, I restocked your wine for you…one should never be without.” He followed her into the kitchen. Putting the bags on the counter, he pulled out bottles. “I know red is your favorite so I got two Cabernet Sauvignons...the Clos du Val comes highly recommended. I also got a Pinot Grigio, a Zinfandel, and a Riesling. One should always have a Riesling on the shelf. It goes very well with a sweet tooth.”

“Oh my God.” Olivia didn’t know what else to say. She was taking out food cartons; the smell was a comfort. He'd bought dumplings, brown rice, and rib tips. She would enjoy every bite.

“I know, I know, but that’s not for tonight. That’s for later. Tonight…” he took out a bottle of Southern Comfort and Grey Goose. “Detective Benson, how do you feel about sloe comfortable screws?”

“I've been known, in my time, to enjoy them.” She replied. “Up against the wall might be my favorite.”

“Great minds think alike.” Rafael pulled a bottle of Galliano from the bag.

“Oh Counselor, I'm going to hug you now.”

Olivia opened her arms and came at him. Rafael rolled his eyes, accepting it. He put one arm around her as the other one was still holding the liqueur. It was a nice hug, she smelled like fresh soap and a bit of lavender. He couldn’t help but sigh when Olivia squeezed him.

“Let’s eat.” She smiled when she pulled away from him.

“I’ll make the drinks.”

000

“Aww seriously, c'mon ladies where is the defense?” Olivia groaned.

“That’s another drink for you, Detective.”

“I'm gonna need a refill.” Olivia drained what was left in her glass.

“Do you have a preference?” Rafael took her glass and got up from the couch. His little stumble doing so made his companion laugh.

“Surprise me.”

“How is that working for you so far?”

“It'd be going better if Ohio State would get their act together.” She glared at the television.

“Purdue is higher ranked but you insisted on going with the Buckeyes.” He said.

“I stand by my decision. I just need my team to work on their defense.”

“Well, you said you wanted to get drunk. In the morning you can send a thank you card to the team.”

Nothing was ever on television but Olivia had settled on the ESPN college channel while they ate and enjoyed their first couple of drinks. As baseball, which was boring them both, ended it was replaced with NCAA Women’s Volleyball. The drinks per point had been Olivia’s idea but Rafael agreed. He needed to relax too and there was plenty of liquor so they wouldn’t run out. He hoped they didn’t run out. Two fresh drinks in hand, he made his way back to the couch.

“Purdue is taking a time out.” Olivia said as he sat down beside her. “I'm only noticing now that there are at least three girls on that team that are about 6’5”.

“I knew that.” Rafael said.

“How could you possibly know that?”

“I looked it up.” He held up his iPhone.

“That’s what you were doing on your phone. I never knew you were a cheater.”

“It was only after you picked Ohio State. I wanted to see what I was working with. They also have three All-Americans and the third ranked freshman to come out of high school last year.”

“Where do you even look up stats for women’s college volleyball?”

“NCAA.com.”

“I really don’t like you.” Olivia said laughing.

“You're laughing, so I know that’s not true.” He smiled, his eyes quickly going back to the screen. The time out was over and the game was back in play.

“Do you like me, Counselor?”

The question caught Rafael off guard. He looked at her again, she was grinning. It was that tipsy grin; he'd seen it on Olivia before. He adored it but that was something the ADA kept to himself.

“As my disdain for a vast amount of the human race goes, you are very low on that list.” He replied.

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“I like you.”

“Your mother says I drive you a little crazy.”

“My mother exaggerates.”

“So I don’t drive you crazy?” Olivia pressed. “Not even a little bit?”

“A little.” He held his thumb and forefinger up, pressed tightly together.

“I knew it.” She clapped, making a strange noise that may have been construed as a combination of laugh and snort.

“You knew what? Why does it matter so much? Why are you so happy about it? I would think it would be something to rectify, not celebrate.”

“You're hard to get to the center of.” She said, gently poked his sternum when she spoke.

“I won't argue with you there, though being enigmatic is not my intent.”

“So tell me one thing; tell me one thing Counselor that might make it a little easier.”

“Your team just lost another point.” Rafael pointed to her highball glass. “Down the hatch.”

“Dammit.” She drank down about half of the Harvey Wallbanger. He was really good at making drinks. Had he been a bartender in college? She knew he was a Harvard scholarship student. “Don’t ever let me pick Ohio State again…they're getting hammered.”

“Speaking of hammered…” he smiled.

“I've only got about 20 to 30 feet to walk to the bedroom tonight. No need for me to touch the tip of my nose or walk a straight line. Now back to that one thing.”

“Are we? And so soon after I thought I'd gotten out of it.”

“C'mon,” Olivia laughed. “Just one thing and I’ll leave you alone. You intrigue me, OK, and I can't figure it all out so you gotta tell me something.”

“Just one thing?”

“Yes. Tell me something adventurous.”

“I was in a club in college and for my junior year we had an off campus Halloween party with a brothel theme. I'd finally had my major growth spurt so the baby fat was gone and I had very slender hips. A friend of mine, who shall remain nameless, hooked me up with a complete Dominatrix outfit for the event. I had to shave my entire body for the aerodynamics to work correctly. It was a very big hit with our guests.”

“Do you still have it?” Olivia asked.

“The Dominatrix outfit,” Rafael nodded. “Yes. The slender hips…depends on the season really.”

“OK I just have one more question.”

“Yes, Detective Benson?” he was only pretending to be slightly exasperated. 

Did she know how much she really drove him crazy? She had to know, she was smarter than him in his dance they were doing. Were they doing this dance or was that just in his imagination? There was nothing wrong with women and men just being good friends; Rafael had a few. This was something more. He felt it, deep down in the pit of his stomach where he felt the things that were rarely talked about. It was better to think of it as a crush, though it was hardly feasible for a man in his 40s to harbor such a thing.

“Can I kiss you now?”

“Wouldn’t you prefer to do something like that when you're sober?” ten points for Slytherin as he managed to spit out the question without his voice going up an octave.

“I can do it now, I can do it then…it’ll be a compare and contrast experiment.” Olivia put her arms around his neck and moved her body in his personal space. She knew Rafael well enough, or thought she did, that if this wasn’t good he would put an end to it quickly. He took his personal space quite seriously. “I'm a really good kisser.”

Rafael smirked and just moved in for the kill. Olivia was a chatter, a shit talker sometimes (usually when drinks were involved) and he liked that about her. But she was still brushing off the shock that he was actually going to let this happen and maybe forgot how to make the first move. He put his arm around her waist, pulling her closer until her breasts pressed on the side of him. That made her moan into the kiss so he deepened it.

“You might be a better kisser than me.” She whispered as their lips came apart just slightly. “I'd have to…one more time…to be sure. C'mere.”

She called him down to the end of the couch. For a moment Rafael just sat there. He knew what was going to happen down there. They were going to make out. Yes, that was surely an antiquated term for it but that’s what would happen nonetheless. 

It had been decades since he’d engaged in such activity. He remembered liking it, who wouldn’t like kissing someone until their lips were swollen and their body ached from the turn on. Is that what he wanted with Olivia Benson? Was the Pope Catholic? Rafael slid down to the end of that couch faster than Tom Cruise across the living room floor in Risky Business. 

There was no need to preface any of it, even with the witty banter that they found they had almost since the first day they met. All that mattered at the moment was the taste of her mouth. Olivia tasted of orange juice and liqueur. She bit his lip a couple of times, tipsy haste, Rafael said to slow down in Spanish. When she licked the wound in response all he could do was moan. 

This wasn’t happening, this absolutely wasn’t happening. It had been some years since anyone even entered Rafael’s orbit of attraction. He was busy, driven in his professional success, and didn’t need the distraction. Even the casual sex here and there had lost its allure. At first it was an outlet but after a while he couldn’t figure out what it was an outlet for anymore. 

For the past two years he'd been a virtual monk. A year into that he met Detective Olivia Benson. It wasn’t love at first sight though he was instantly drawn to her. It was her eyes. You could see everything in Olivia’s eyes. Her anger, sadness, happiness, triumph, even the devilish glint she got sometimes when she knew she was onto something and was going to take someone down. 

Rafael loved that look. Something swelled in him, not even sexually, when she had that look. While comparing a woman to an animal wasn’t exactly a good thing, Olivia was a lioness. She was fiercely protective of her family, friends, and the victims on the job. At the same time she nurtured and supported them. 

In the box with a perp she became the leader of the pride, ready to take down the enemy with a slash to the jugular that was impossible to recover from. But what did a lioness do during the mating ritual? There was no time to look it up on his phone. Rafael was just grateful that he knew for sure that they didn’t eat their mates.

“I should…” he cleared his throat a bit as Liv kissed the side of his mouth. “It’s getting late and I should probably go home.”

“I'm not asking you to leave.” Olivia shook her head as she caressed his face.

“We've both been drinking, Liv.” It was impossible not to lean into her touch. What had he been thinking, avoiding it for so long? Oh right, it was impossible not to lean into her touch. “We had long days, yours was bad and…”

“It’s getting better as we speak.” She smiled.

“Sober is better.” Rafael took hold of both of her hands. He knew sometimes when women were intoxicated and wanted you to stay, they went straight for the jewels. He'd had to get himself out of similar situations more than once. The problem here was if Olivia went there, he wasn’t going to be able to help himself. Since she read him so well on other things, she probably knew it as well. “I promise you.”

“Can we finish our drunk volleyball game next week?” Liv asked.

“There will be different teams.” Rafael sat up on the couch. He began to gather some of the cartons from their late Chinese dinner. His sloe comfortable screw was about three-quarters full and he had no intention of letting it go to waste.

“Yeah, I'm never rooting for Ohio State again.” Liv made a face as she finished her drink. “They're down 8 to 13. Purdue only needs two more points to finish them.”

“They play the best of three.” He said. He walked into the kitchen. Liv was just lounging on the couch; she was more intoxicated than he was. That had been the mission for the night and it was accomplished. “It’s like tennis that way.”

“I didn’t know that. I don’t think I knew that. Well it’s a good plan because if not a good team could finish a match in about 10 minutes. Hey,” she sat up some. “You don’t have to clean my kitchen, Barba.”

“I'm just cleaning up the food…ant season is coming.”

Olivia shook her head and laughed as she went back to lounging on the couch. He'd spent a good deal of money, none of which he asked for her to return. He drank with her, hung out, and was now cleaning up after himself. If Olivia wasn’t so bad with men she would think he was damn near perfect. But she rarely snagged a regular old good guy…something had to be wrong with him. That wasn’t fair and wrong had a million connotations, many out of the person’s control. Olivia sure had her fair share of things “wrong” with her so there was little room to talk.

“Penny for your thoughts.” He walked back into the living room and looked at her. 

She was beautiful, relaxed on the couch but still flushed from being in his arms. Did he really have to leave? Try as he might, Rafael couldn’t justify a drunken romp with Olivia. It didn’t seem fair to either one of them. For all he knew that kissing might have been his first and last chance. If that was so then at least he enjoyed the hell out of it. Anyway, if Olivia didn’t want him in her bed sober then being there drunk was an even worse idea than Rafael already thought it was.

“There's something wrong with all of us.” She said as she stood up from the couch. Her intent was to walk the ADA to the door.

“Amen to that.” When she reached out her hand for his, Rafael took it. “Is that what you were thinking about?”

“On the surface. Going too deep would just ruin my hard earned buzz. It would be disrespectful of all the work you put in to get me here.”

“Not to toot my own horn but I did work pretty hard.”

“Toot, toot.” Olivia mumbled.

They laughed as she unlocked the door. Rafael went to step over the threshold but realized he was still holding her hand. Who knew it would be so difficult to let go? Olivia slipped her hand away and smiled.

“Be safe getting home, Counselor.”

“I will be.”

“Hug?” she opened her arms.

Barba smirked and walked into them. This time he had both free hands, it was quite an experience. They held onto each other for a while; he can admit to attempting to break away first. But it was those eyes. It was those damn big brown eyes. They were glassy tonight, from the cocktails no doubt, but he still saw the longing there. Rafael wanted to dive into them and never come up for air. When Olivia bit her lip he was absolutely sure.

“I don’t want to go.” He cupped her face in his hands, kissing her softly. “I should go, but I…”

“Stay.”

He nodded, both because the words weren't needed and he didn’t really have them. Rafael wanted this and he knew Olivia did as well. Who knew what would happen tomorrow but something had to happen right now. Closing and locking the door, the couple quickly made their way to the bedroom to see just what that would be.

***


End file.
